Tesla, Waymo and Aviari have all been approved to operate thousands of self-driving vehicles in Las Vegas.
Tesla Robotaxi has been approved to operate 5,000 vehicles, while Alphabet Inc.-backed Waymo and Uber subsidiary Aviari have been approved to operate 1,000, according to a Friday news release by the Nevada Transportation Authority. All three companies are allowed to charge for rides.
The approval came during Thursday’s NTA board meeting. In July, Tesla was initially approved to operate only 10 robotaxis in Las Vegas; the expanded fleet was approved after the request was heard by the full authority, NTA spokeswoman Teri Williams said.
As part of the approval, all three companies have the ability to operate to and from Harry Reid International Airport, but they each must receive authorization from the Clark County Department of Aviation first.
No autonomous vehicle companies have been approved to provide commercial rides at Reid Airport, according to Monika Bertaki, airport spokeswoman.
“There have been informal discussions with several autonomous technologies; however, the two that currently have mapping and testing agreements with the Clark County Department of Aviation are Zoox and Waymo,” Bertaki said.
Zoox was approved last month by the NTA to offer paid rides, a year after the Amazon-owned company began offering free, demonstration rides. Zoox’s fleet at launch last week as 64 robotaxis.
As part of the approval, the trio of AV companies must provide vehicle inspection documents, maintain insurance, submit rates to the NTA before vehicles are put into service for public rides and provide information on their customer-facing applications for regulatory review.
“Nevada has established a regulatory framework for autonomous vehicle network companies that is intended to provide a clear process for innovation while maintaining regulatory oversight,” Nevada Department of Business and Industry Director Kristopher Sanchez said in a statement.
“As autonomous vehicle technology continues to develop and these companies scale up their operations, I support the NTA’s commitment to evaluate the existing regulatory framework and make adjustments when appropriate to ensure that the safety of the traveling public remains a central consideration,” the statement said.
Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on X.